Verse 21: Little children, guard yourselves from idols.
John now concludes his epistle with a command to his loving children that they should guard themselves from idols. The word guard means to keep1 with the objective to actively refrain from idols. This recollects the second commandment given by God to Moses which is still applicable today:
“You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me.” (Exodus 20:4–5)
But what exactly is an idol? To begin with, the word idol comes from the Greek word to see, meaning that it is something visual or visualized. Visual idols are often considered to be simply man-made objects, such as statues patterned from various materials: stone, wood, metal, rubber or plastic. They were designed to be viewed and/or hand-held for pagan worship and adoration; many were invoked to assist the worshiper with worldly matters: crops, sex, combat, suffering, etc. Scripture frequently identifies many of these idols: the golden calf (Exodus 32); teraphim—household idols (Gen. 31:19; Judges 17:5; 1 Sam. 19:13; Hosea 3:4); the “silver shrines” of the goddess Artemis’ (Diana) temple (Acts 19:24ff); and Athens, the city full of idols (Acts 17:16ff). They are characterized as abominations (Deut. 29:17; 32:16) and demons, not the true God (Deut. 32:17; cf. 1 Cor. 10:20–21). The worship of idols is unquestionably the sin of idolatry.
The extent of the problem of idols in the Jewish nation compelled Isaiah to write that the land had been “filled with idols” (Isaiah 2:8). And Jeremiah admonished them of the foolishness and irrationality of idol worship, proclaiming that idols cannot speak or walk “nor can they do any good” (Jeremiah 10:2-5). And those who disobeyed God’s mandate against idolatry were ridiculed:
“Woe to him who says to a piece of wood, ‘Awake!’ To a mute stone, ‘Arise!’ And that is your teacher? Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver, And there is no breath at all inside it.” (Habakkuk 2:19)
John is not alone in warning against idols, Paul charged the Corinthians to flee from idolatry (1 Corinthians 10:14), to run and earnestly avoid it.2 Paul also commended the Thessalonians for having “turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God” (1 Thess. 1:9). On this point, John may have been concerned that his readers would be deceived by the Gnostic heresy that denied the deity of Jesus Christ and instead of serving the true God that they would idolize the false concepts of Christ that the Gnostics promoted.
Idols in the World
In our culture today, there are celebrities in sports, entertainment and even in politics that are considered stars or idols that are fervently admired. Not that they are being worshipped in a religious manner, but they have become the center of attention for their fan base and the mainstream media. To what extent they are venerated is relevant only to the individual admirer. For there are many who are so obsessed with a celebrity that they attend all their events, watch all their shows and own their posters, recordings, videos and signature clothing.
Thus it might be asked: do believers today have idols? Some believers admire Christian entertainers and their music or acting abilities; and there have been some ministers, television evangelists and Christian authors who have enthusiastic followers. We must each carefully consider whether our love for God is superseded by our affections for these individuals and if it distracts us from our serving and genuine worship of Our Lord.
John’s intention here is to caution against more than physical idols of pagan worship; he is warning believers that replacing their affections for the true God with anything is contrary to the teaching of Scripture. For the all-consuming idolization of a person, object or social trend are aspects of the “things in the world” that John has commanded that we are not to love (1 John 2:15). The apostle Paul was of the same thinking, commanding the believer to “Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth” (Colossians 3:2).
[1] As it is translated in many English versions - ESV, NKJV, KJV, NIV.
[2] Zodhiates, S. (2000). In The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament. Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, G5343.
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